Summer 2015 will be the 13th year the Lehigh Valley will be hosting teens from Yoav, our sister community in Israel. We are excited to welcome them to our community.

In addition to four teens, we also have a summer camp shlicha, Dor Ben Ham, who will serve as the advisor to the Yoav teens and will work with them at camp. Dor will be coordinating the Israel component at Camp JCC.

The teens are here as part of the Partnership2Gether program. This is a joint initiative of the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley and the Yoav Regional Council in Israel to create a people-to-people connection between our Jewish communities. The partnership program is administered by the Jewish Agency for Israel. 

OR-EL MAROM-SHEMESH
Or-El Marom Shemesh lives with her parents Hagit and Dubi, and her younger brother Elroi, in Moshav Kfar Harif in the Yoav region. She is 16 years old and attends Zafit High School where she majors in social science and theater, and goes to the boarding school three nights a week. Or-El has participated in many of the school’s performances and shows, and loves to dance, act, sing and play piano. She is also a counselor for the Ihud Hahaklai movement, and loves working with kids.

NOA SLAMA
Noa Slama lives with her mother, Dafna, her father, Gidi, her older sister, Roni, her little sister, Shira, and her younger brother in Kibbutz Bet Nir. Noa is 16 years old and attends Zafit High School, and stays at the boarding school three nights a week. As a gymnast, Noa practices twice a week as well as sings, cooks, plays the guitar, and draws. Noa is a youth counselor for Hashomer Hatzair movement for the 6th grade.

ITAY ESHEL
Itay Eshel lives in moshav Kfar Harif with his father, mother, and two sisters Naom and Shay. As a 10th grader, Itay is majoring in biology and chemistry. His hobbies include football, basketball, volleyball, listening to music and communicating with people to learn new things. Itay is a youth counselor with the Ihud Hahaklai movement for the 6th grade.

TAMIR SHECORY
Tamir Shecory was born in Portland, Oregon, but now lives in Moshav Kfar Harif with his father, mother, and two older sisters Shani and Adi. Tamir is a junior at Zafit High School where he is studying art, math and chemistry. Since fourth grade, Tamir has been playing volleyball but he also enjoys other sports, drawing, sculpting and photography. Tamir started his second year as a counselor at Ihud Hahaklai movement with 4th and 5th graders.

DOR BEN HAM
Dor Ben Ham is originally from Moshav Shomera, which is north of Israel next to the Lebanese border. As a communication Sergeant, Dor was stationed in the north and commanded four soldiers. Previously, Dor has been a counselor at Noah’s Ark in Baltimore. She finished her army service about 16 months ago, and moved to Haifa about a year ago. 

For more information about Partnership2Gether and the itinerary for our visitors from Yoav, contact Aaron Gorodzinsky at 610-821-5500 or aaron@jflv.org or visit Partnership2Gether online.